The preparations for tonight had begun right after the lunch rush.
Guests had started to arrive not long ago.
Maelis entered the room and despite the hurt she had caused me, I couldn’t ignore how utterly stunning she looked in a tight-fitting red robe.
She greeted a few people and casually strode over to my cage.
“Did they bring you something to eat?” she asked quietly.
I didn’t want to respond, but just hearing her voice calmed my nerves.
What was it about her that could bring me to my knees, even after everything she had done to me and the realm?
I needed to get my feelings under control.
“Why do you care, wordsmith? Just leave me alone,” I said tiredly.
She didn’t respond, but walked over to one of the waiters and told them to make sure that food was given to me.
She then made her way over to Ignara, who looked her up and down approvingly.
“I knew this would look splendid on you, wordsmith!” she exclaimed and hooked her arm into hers, “Let me introduceyou to a few important people here.”
After that both of them were out of earshot, but I kept track of Maelis’s movements the entire time.
They spent an hour circling the room, shaking hands and making polite conversation. The air was getting stuffy and smelled like a mixture of sweat, expensive perfume, and cigar smoke.
I closed my eyes again and tried to meditate, until a bell rang and indicated that it was time for the guests to take their assigned seats.
Somnaris was at the head of the table, of course.
Ignara and the other God, who I recognized as Meridian, The God of Trade and Prosperity, were sitting to his left and right, accompanied by Thalora.
Then there was Maelis and the priest and several other noble born Faeries.
Everyone else was seated on separate round tables across the room.
The whole time during dinner, Maelis kept a bored and disinterested look on her face, but I could see she was listening intently to their conversations at the table.
She had that concentrated look on her face, where her eyebrows drew together slightly and her head leaned forward.
The voice of a noble Faerie with purple hair carried over to me.
“They have taken many Heralds as prisoners, but have yet to ask for an exchange for their own men.”
The Herald seated next to him responded, “It’s remarkable how quickly they lost their minds when the wordsmith switched sides, just like Ignara had predicted. They know theyneedher to fulfill the prophecy and are out of optionsnow that we have captured her and Auretheos.”
The Herald chuckled at that. Their words hurt, knowing that my court was crumbling under my captivation and her betrayal.
I did this.
It was my fault.
I had lost sight of what was important.
I let them all down and now they would pay the price for my transgressions.
Somnaris stood up and tapped with his fork against his glass. The murmurs quieted down and everybody looked towards their host.
